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ZWC_yamada 
Date and time: March 6, 2011 (Sunday) 12:00-14:00
Meeting place: Jingu-dori Park(10-minute walk from Shibuya Station East Exit, next to Miyashita Park)
Number of participants: Approximately 70 (from Ghana, Japan, the United States, Pakistan, Iran, etc.)
In March 2010, a Ghanaian man named Abubakar Awudu Suraj passed away.
Suraj had overstayed his visa in Japan and was ordered by the immigration authorities to leave the country. However, Suraj had a Japanese wife, and he was in the process of appealing to the courts and the immigration authorities to allow him to continue living with his wife in Japan, a country he was familiar with. In the midst of this, the immigration authorities carried out his deportation to Ghana without informing his wife, and Suraj died during the process.
There has been no official announcement regarding how Suraj died, but this is what we have learned from discussions with the Ministry of Justice. Suraj was forcibly put onto a plane by immigration officials, who handcuffed him and used a towel as a gag. He then collapsed and died.
At the end of last year, ten immigration officials involved in this deportation were referred to the public prosecutor's office. The Chiba District Public Prosecutor's Office is currently deciding whether or not to indict them. A swift and appropriate decision is awaited.
We held a parade in Shibuya to call for an early indictment in the case of Suraj and to raise awareness of Suraj's case among the general public.
During the parade, we handed out flyers to passersby, and they were well-received, which was quite encouraging. We also had people join us midway through and made donations to the Suraj Foundation, making it a very successful parade.
This time, a friend of Suraj took the microphone and spoke out at the forefront. APFS will continue to work with Suraj's wife, friends, and legal team to uncover the truth behind Suraj's case.